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MT07 - ABS or No ABS


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<t>ABS or Non-ABS</t>  

20 members have voted

  1. 1. ABS or Non-ABS

    • ABS
      15
    • Non-ABS
      5


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Hey guys,


So im going to be passing my test soon....

Im more than likely going to be getting a MT07 :lol: (test ride will confirm or deny it :P )


My debate is this;

ABS version or non-ABS version?

Ive seen the video proof and know that ABS makes sense...

but on the other hand im hearing / seeing ALOT of hate for the ABS function :/

im going to be buying it new, so im going to be wearing it in regardless, but i just dont know why the general ABS reception is shady?


Im going to leave my decision to be swayed by you lovely folk. :popcorn:


So, what'ya think... to ABS or not to ABS?


Cheerz! :cheers:

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My logic on ABS would be:

- Costs money that could otherwise be spent on bike bling

- Reinforces bad habits

- One more thing that can go wrong and be a bast*rd to fix

- You will never know the satisfaction of locking the rear and managing to not bin it :lol:

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Did my DAS on a bike with ABS, first time I had to do a real-world emergency stop on my own bike (sans-ABS) it was a little pant-crapping :lol: So I figure better to start off without and learn how to brake properly without assistance then treat yourself to something with ABS, rather than the other way round.

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Never had the ABS interfere with my riding. You need to have done something pretty stupid to need it, or be on a really crap road surface.. (Stupid place to ride)

I would say buy with ABS it will have a higher resale value as most will want it if the option is there.

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I doubt you'll get a test ride within 12 months of passing your test.

 

Really? surely theres a way around such a scenario.

I mean i get why they would be anxious. but im 25, have driven 7 years odd. been riding on and off since may last year.

Surely they would just take my details and any damage to the bike that was caused on the ride i would be liable for 'nuff said?

:?

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Back to topic...


I've not had ABS but I wouldn't mind giving it a go. I've heard that some systems kick in before you lose outright grip but that isn't necessarily a bad thing.


I learned how to control a front end slide by practicing on gravel and loose surfaces yet I've only had one instance that nearly made me drop my bowels and that was hammering down the back straight at Snetterton, over cooking it at 140mph-ish then over-braking for the corner. On reflection I think that having ABS would have made that a bit less of a stool inducing moment as the front wouldn't have washed so much and I might have been able to make the corner. As it was I got lucky and trundled in to the run-off then back on track.


If I hadn't have learned how to control the front end slide then I may have binned it so Ollie's point is absolutely valid.


The more I think about it, the more I think ABS would be a good thing in the "real world" where people don't always give their full attention to their riding - especially doing a commute.

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yeah it makes sense that you should get the experience of a non abs system. but from 1st Jan 2016 you cant buy a new bike without ABS. Eu laws and all. :roll:


So if im going to be getting newer bikes they are all going to have ABS anyway.


meh i think i might just go with the ABS. it makes sense to me, especially seeing as im not 100% confident on wet riding as it is, it will ease my worry slightly knowing i have help :lol:

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Interesting thought; if your bike has ABS but you've switched it off for some reason (say you've just been riding on dirt and didn't bother stopping to reactivate the ABS before getting back on tarmac), and then you bin the bike and you or the bike get wrecked in such a way as to prevent you switching it back on post-accident, could your insurers use it as grounds to refuse your claim? Even if the crash wasn't actually caused by a wheel locking but the investigator had sufficient grounds to see it as a possible cause?

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Interesting thought; if your bike has ABS but you've switched it off for some reason (say you've just been riding on dirt and didn't bother stopping to reactivate the ABS before getting back on tarmac), and then you bin the bike and you or the bike get wrecked in such a way as to prevent you switching it back on post-accident, could your insurers use it as grounds to refuse your claim? Even if the crash wasn't actually caused by a wheel locking but the investigator had sufficient grounds to see it as a possible cause?

Same can be said of a lot of driver/rider aids - my car has adaptive cruise control, collision avoidance, lane departure, self park, blah, blah. It's all turned off because it's bloody annoying and get's on my tits! I think a insurance company would have to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that deactivating said feature was a major contributory factor in the prang for their claim to stand up.

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Ive had an ABS equipped bike since 1997.


if it activates once a year then thats out of the ordinary.. and its usually in winter. obviously being such an old system i get the pulse through the brakes. newer systems lack that I believe. Anyway.. it must be winter of last year that it activated.. and it was momentary. braking a little too heavily at lights and encountering a pile-up of salt/grit.


as for times before that.. its so rare i can't honestly think of one. it has zero effect on braking in normal day to day riding. its a fail safe. so does nothing aside from bide its time. I'm only aware of it when I ride off and the 'test' lights go off with the accompanying sound of something dropping off. (normal behaviour for this old system)


thing is.. its there for when the shit hits the fan and you'll never know its there for the rest of the time. one nice side effect from my system. part of its 'check' is the battery power.. if it detects a low state of charge it lets me know, by not setting. usually a short ride is enough to pump up the battery and it'll set as usual. in real terms this is the first sign i get that the battery is on its way out. I like that. it means I have plenty of time to get a new one sorted before it becomes an engine starting issue.


it also adds value. when you come to sell. people will overwhelmingly choose an ABS bike over a none. despite the nay sayers. thats a fact of life. and because this demand is higher.. the prices will be correspondingly high too.


my F800 doesn't have it. that doesn't worry me. That bike was a bargain and not in small part because it is a rare beast. an F800 without ABS.


when people say 'it has an effect on your skills' i have no idea what they're talking about.. and at risk of being controversial - neither do they. :up:

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Having lost the front on two occasions in the past, both times due to diesel or similar on the road I've purchased my first bike with ABS. Not sure if it would help much with diesel but if it does all good and well.

I can't see the point of not having it.

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Having lost the front on two occasions in the past, both times due to diesel or similar on the road I've purchased my first bike with ABS. Not sure if it would help much with diesel but if it does all good and well.

I can't see the point of not having it.

 

it only has to stop you going over once to pay for itself Gary. diesel.. you'll not lose the front end - it will stop that happening if you brake unaware. in fact with these new systems being used its unlikely you'll even know it happened. they're really very sophisticated compared to mine.. which dates right back to 1993 I believe.

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I've ridden with Yamaha abs for 5 years now I can activate it if I want but it had no bearing on hard riding and does not interfere enough so you won't learn the apostate proper braking techniques what ever people on here think those are exactly but that one time it does save you a lot of pain and expense you will be glad you had it.


Oh and it's never gone wrong yet.

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I'd say go without.

But that's for me-I haven't ridden a modern ABS, only a 2009 Yamaha XJ6 and didn't like it.


I trully believe that the more gadjets one introduces, the less they evolve their skills and the less they concentrate on their actual riding, so no ABS(although I understand that it's a safety mechanism), no traction control, no GPS for me.


But after all that's me.. :wink:

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A test ride is more than possible, if you was looking at the new r1 or m1 then maybe they would ask for more experience. I was only riding 6 months before i was let loose on the demo fleet at wheels and i took the k6 750 gsxr, hyabusa, and tuono.


Abs is becomming more and more common and wouldnt be surprised if all bikes have it in the next few years.

Its an added safety feature so go for it, just as long as you ride not thinking 'its ok i have abs' dont rely on it and use the skills you learn in your test and course.


I know people that hate abs in cars and thats been roumd for years and they never actually have an argument other than your not really in control which is a load of tosh, the main function of abs is to be able to steer while heavy braking so you can brake and avoid the obsticle ect,


Oh by the way i domt have abs and havnt ridden with it either

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I'd say go without.

But that's for me-I haven't ridden a modern ABS, only a 2009 Yamaha XJ6 and didn't like it.

 

i find this comment really quite strange. the ABS system on my bike is much older and I can't say "I don't like it".. because for an average 364.9 days of the year it does nothing at all.


and that .1 day of the year is a massive over statement.. because as and when it does activate - its a only for a second, maybe two. and thats pushing it.



so please.. just for me, why didn't you like it?

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I doubt you'll get a test ride within 12 months of passing your test.

 

I went to my local Suzuki dealer to sit on and look at a V-strom and the dealer said when I've past my test, come back and you can take it for a test ride... I was also considering a Kawasaki Vulcan S too before that and that dealer said the same. I don't see it as a problem. I've definitely decided on a V-strom :)

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